The Power of Moments
Think you might want to read this book?
The Heath brothers do it again. In The Power of Moments they piece together research, personal anecdotes, history, and psychology to clarify something that affects us all… moments in our lives. They clarify the conditions that increase the chances they are memorable, like creating “peak moments”(eg. college acceptance communication), “leveling up” your pride(e.g. Boy Scout levels), and connections (e.g. team building exercises) all enhance the moments of our lives. The four concepts of elevation, insight, pride, and connection are all emphasized as gateways to better experiences. A great read for all leaders and those interested in making the lives of others better.
What Would Socrates Ask?
What if we allowed students to take part in designing their learning experiences?
What if report cards were replaced with periodic celebrations of learning?
What if parents came to campus to see academic achievement as often as they do for Athletics & Fine Arts?
How often, and how publically, do we celebrate student learning?
How often, and how publically, do we celebrate teacher growth?
How often does the student learning experience radically shift?
How often are meetings run in a completely different way?
What if progress in PE was charged with before and after unit videos of each student?
What if before a class or unit we asked students, “What do you want to learn?”
What if acceptance into a new school generated not just a letter, but also a poster, sticker, magnet, and keychain?
Research
...research has found that in recalling an experience, we ignore most of what happened and focus instead on a few particular moments.
Defining moments are created from one or more of the following four elements:
Elevations: Defining moments rise above the everyday.
Insight: Defining moments rewire our understanding of ourselves or the world.
Pride: Defining moments capture us at our best - moments of achievement, moments of courage.
Connection: Defining moments are social: weddings, graduations, baptisms, vacations, work triumphs, bar and bat mitzvahs, speeches, sporting events.
Defining moments possess at least one of the four elements above, but they need not have all four.
Research suggests that when customers contact you because they’ve had problems with your product or service, you should focus on defense - that is, you should focus on efficiency and not try to “delight” them.
...on average, companies spend 80% of their resources trying to improve the experience of seriously unhappy customers.
Employees were asked to rank the factors that motivated them. “Full appreciation of work done” was number one.
...the top reason people leave their jobs is a lack of praise and recognition.
Purpose trumps passion.
Concepts
Peak-end rule- ...They seem to rate the experience based on two key moments: (1)The best or worst moment, known as the “peak”; and (2) the ending.
Reminiscence bump: Memories tend to be drawn disproportionately from ages 15 to 30.
Self-insight: a mature understanding of our capabilities and motivations.
Perceived Partner Responsiveness: Our relationships are stronger when we perceive that our partners are responsive to us.
Quotes from the author
...a teacher plans his history curriculum for a semester, but every class period gets roughly the same amount of attention. There’s no attempt to shape a few “peak” moments.
Business leaders who can spot their customers’ moments of dissatisfaction and vulnerability - and take decisive action to support those customers - will have no trouble differentiating themselves from competitors. Offering to help someone in a difficult time is its own goal and reward.
...once every 5 to 10 meetings, find a way to break the script.
Action leads to insight more often than insight leads to action.
In organizations, mentorship can take a stronger form. High standards + assurance is a powerful formula, but ultimately it’s just a statement of expectations. What great mentors do is add two more elements: direction and support. I have high expectations for you and I know you can meet them. So try this new challenge and if you fail, I’ll help you recover. That’s mentorship in two sentences. It sounds simple, yet it’s powerful enough to transform careers.
...regardless of how skilled we are, it’s usually having our skill noticed by others that sparks the moment of pride.
What’s important is authenticity; being personal not programmatic. And frequency: closer to weekly than yearly. And of course what’s most important is the message: “I saw what you did and I appreciate it.”
In short, courage is contagious. From historic protests to everyday acts, from the civil rights movement to an employee asking a tough question, this is the lesson we’ve learned: It is hard to be courageous, but it’s easier when you’ve practiced, and when you stand up, others will join you.
...purpose isn’t discovered, it’s cultivated.
Relationships don’t deepen naturally. In the absence of action, they will stall.
Stay alert to the promise that moments hold. These moments do not need to be “produced.”
Quotes from others
“‘School needs to be so much more like sports,’ he added ‘In sports, there’s a game, and it’s in front of an audience. We run school like it is nonstop practice. You never get a game. Nobody would go out for the basketball team if you never had a game. What is the game for the students?’” - Jeff Gilbert
“To exceed customer expectations and create a memorable experience, you need the behavioral and interpersonal parts of the service. You need the element of pleasant surprise. And that comes when human beings interact.” - Leonard Berry
“Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear- not absence of fear.” - Mark Twain
“Laughter is more about relationships than humor. We laugh to tie the group together. Our laughter says, I’m with you. I'm part of your group.” - Robert Provine
Gateways to further learning
Referenced book for purchase
The applicability of this book to education is ….
Resources
